Water and ice are defining characteristics of Canada’s physical environment.

The composition and dynamics of water and ice are changing in response to cumulative impacts of climate change, atmospheric pollution and activities associated with resource extraction. The Water and Ice Research Laboratory (WIRL) is a research cluster in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Carleton University developed to study watershed hydrologic systems (led by Murray Richardson) and coastal and drifting ice processes (led by Derek Mueller). Our research efforts are motivated by the critical need to observe, model and predict rapid environmental changes to the Earth’s hydrosphere and cryosphere in order to contribute new knowledge that will inform mitigation policies and adaptation strategies.

For more information, please consult the  Water and   Ice research pages or click on the map below to find out more about our activities.